Question 1

Repression most clearly involves a failure in

Accepted Answer

Repression involves a failure in retrieval, where an individual unconsciously blocks out painful or unpleasant memories, making them inaccessible through normal recall processes.

Question 2

An attorney uses misleading questions to distort a court witness' recall of a previously observed crime.This best illustrates

Accepted Answer

The scenario described best illustrates the misinformation effect, which occurs when misleading information alters a person's memory of an event. In this case, the attorney's misleading questions are likely to alter the witness' memory of the crime. Anterograde amnesia refers to the inability to form new memories after a brain injury, and is not relevant to this scenario. Proactive interference refers to the phenomenon where old memories interfere with the ability to remember new information. Positive transfer refers to the facilitation of learning new information based on previously learned information or skills, and is also not relevant to this scenario.

Question 3

Learning a new online banking password may block the recall of a familiar old password.This illustrates

Accepted Answer

Retroactive interference occurs when new information interferes with the ability to recall old information. Learning a new password can make it harder to remember an old one because the new information (new password) disrupts the recall of the old information (old password).

Question 4

The misinformation effect refers to the

Accepted Answer

The misinformation effect describes the phenomenon where the incorporation of misleading information into one's memory of an event can alter or distort their recollection of what happened. This can occur as a result of suggestive questioning or exposure to incorrect information after the event occurred.

Question 5

Philippe has just completed medical school.In reflecting on his years of formal education,he is able to recall the names of all his instructors except the fifth-grade teacher who flunked him.According to Freud,his forgetting illustrates

Accepted Answer

Freud believed that forgetting could be attributed to repression, which is a defense mechanism in the subconscious mind where painful or unpleasant memories are blocked from conscious awareness. The fact that Philippe is able to remember all his other instructors except the one who flunked him suggests that this memory may have been repressed.

Question 6

Professor Maslova has so many memories of former students that she has difficulty remembering the names of new students.The professor's difficulty best illustrates

Accepted Answer

Proactive interference occurs when old information interferes with the recall of new information. In this case, the professor's memories of former students are making it difficult to remember the names of new students.

Question 7

We often modify our long-term memories in light of our current knowledge and expectations.This best illustrates the impact of

Accepted Answer

Reconsolidation refers to the process of modifying existing memories as a result of new learning or experiences. It involves the retrieval of a memory followed by its updating and re-storage in the brain. Therefore, the modification of long-term memories in light of our current knowledge and expectations is an example of reconsolidation.

Question 8

A process in which previously stored memories,when retrieved,are altered before being stored again is called

Accepted Answer

The process in which previously stored memories, when retrieved, are altered before being stored again is called reconsolidation. Retroactive and proactive interference refer to situations where new learning interferes with the memory of previously learned material. Repression is a controversial Freudian concept that suggests the mind automatically pushes traumatic experiences into the unconscious to protect the individual from the anxiety associated with them.

Question 9

Research participants who were exposed to very convincing arguments about the desirability of frequent toothbrushing misrecalled how frequently they had brushed their teeth in the preceding two weeks.This best illustrates

Accepted Answer

This scenario illustrates motivated forgetting, where individuals alter their memories or forget information based on their desires or motivations—in this case, to align with the convincing arguments about frequent toothbrushing.

Question 10

After studying biology all afternoon,Alonzo is having difficulty remembering details of the organic chemistry material he memorized that morning.Alonzo's difficulty best illustrates

Accepted Answer

Retroactive interference occurs when new information interferes with the ability to recall old information. In this case, the biology material may be interfering with Alonzo's ability to recall the organic chemistry material he learned earlier that day.

Question 11

The disruptive effect of prior learning on the recall of new information is called

Accepted Answer

Proactive interference occurs when prior learning disrupts the recall of new information. Retroactive interference occurs when new learning disrupts the recall of old information. Encoding failure occurs when new information is not effectively encoded into memory. Source amnesia occurs when a person remembers information but is unable to recall where the information was learned from.

Question 12

Who emphasized that we repress anxiety-arousing memories?

Accepted Answer

Sigmund Freud emphasized that we repress anxiety-arousing memories.

Question 13

Knowledge of Latin can help people to learn French.This best illustrates

Accepted Answer

Positive transfer refers to the phenomenon where skills or knowledge from one domain can aid learning or performance in another domain. In this case, knowledge of Latin (a related language) can help with learning French, suggesting positive transfer.

Question 14

Ebbinghaus found the task of learning new lists of nonsense syllables increasingly difficult as his research career progressed.Which of the following best explains his problem?

Accepted Answer

Proactive interference occurs when previously learned information interferes with the learning and retention of new information. As Ebbinghaus learned more and more lists of nonsense syllables, the previously learned lists likely interfered with his ability to learn and retain new lists.

Question 15

When Loftus and Palmer asked observers of a filmed car accident how fast the vehicles were going when they "smashed" into each other,the observers developed memories of the accident that

Accepted Answer

Loftus and Palmer found that when the observers were asked how fast the vehicles were going when they "smashed" into each other, their memories of the accident were influenced by the wording of the question. Those who were asked with the word "smashed" gave higher speed estimates and reported more severe damage to the cars, indicating that their memories of the event were altered to align with the suggestion made by the question. Thus, they portrayed the event as more serious than it had actually been.

Question 16

Retroactive interference refers to the

Accepted Answer

Retroactive interference occurs when new learning disrupts the recall of previously learned material. This occurs because the new information interferes with the ability to retrieve the old information.

Question 17

Jackie frequently experiences intrusive memories of an emotionally traumatic experience that she has been trying to forget.Her intrusive memories provide evidence of unsuccessful memory

Accepted Answer

Jackie's experience of intrusive memories despite trying to forget them is indicative of unsuccessful repression, a defense mechanism that aims to keep distressing thoughts and feelings out of conscious awareness. Repression involves the failure to recall a memory due to the emotional pain associated with it, rather than issues with the encoding, storage, or rehearsal of the memory.

Question 18

When asked misleading questions after observing an accident,eyewitnesses often reconstruct their initial memories of the event.This best illustrates

Accepted Answer

The phenomenon described in the question is known as the misinformation effect, where questions or information presented after an event can alter an eyewitness's memory or perception of the event. The other options (repression, déjà vu, and implicit memory) do not apply to the specific scenario described in the question.

Question 19

It's evening and we're mentally replaying the day's events.We picture our facial expressions as we listened to a friend's tale of woe.Because we were unable to see these expressions at the time,our recall illustrates

Accepted Answer

This scenario is an example of memory construction, where our brain fills in the gaps in our memory by constructing what we think may have happened based on our current knowledge and beliefs. The fact that we are able to recall our own facial expressions implies that we are reconstructing the memory based on our self-perception and possible biases. Source amnesia refers to the inability to remember where or how we acquired a certain piece of information. Implicit memory refers to non-conscious memory that influences our behavior, such as procedural memory. Proactive interference occurs when previously learned information interferes with new information. None of these concepts fully explain the scenario presented.

Question 20

Two people learned nonsense syllables and then tried to recall them after up to eight hours had elapsed.Jenkins and Dallenbach observed that forgetting occurred least rapidly when the individuals spent their time

Accepted Answer

Jenkins and Dallenbach observed that forgetting occurred least rapidly when individuals were asleep, indicating that sleep plays a role in memory consolidation and retention.

Quiz 9: Memory